Construction employment up in February, paring down further on pandemic losses
By On-Site Staff
Labour
Canada’s construction workforce is down 3.5 per cent since the start of the pandemic
The Canadian construction industry’s labour market stayed in the green last month, reinforcing a strong gain in January, to come nearly within 50,000 jobs of its pre-pandemic high.
Statistics Canada reported the industry added 6,800 jobs, or 0.5 per cent, to payroll in February. The seasonally adjusted increase brings the total number of workers in the industry to 1.442 million, up from 1.435 million a month earlier.
The added positions in construction compare to an even stronger performance in Canada’s overall labour market, which saw employment rise 1.4 per cent during the month. Statistics Canada pointed to the easing of COVID-19 restrictions that had been put in place in December for the increase.
The gain in construction also continued to narrow the gap between current employment and pre-pandemic employment. Compared to February of last year, the industry’s workforce is now down 52,200 workers, or 3.5 per cent — by far the smallest difference since the pandemic began last March.
